The Flight of the Princess
by Amateur Marauder
Summary: Kairi's return to Destiny Islands has been met with nothing but longing to return to the stars and rejoin the cosmic battle between the Light and Dark. But when Sora, Riku and King Mickey are unavailable to save the latest planet the world-eating Heartless have turned their eyes on, Master Yen Sid just may fulfill her wish, calling upon Prince Noctis and his royal caravan to help!
1. The Princess

**Chapter One**

Swinging her schoolbag in her left hand, and a "pick me up" bar of sea salt ice cream in her right, Kairi was in the midst of her daily walk home. She did this yesterday, and the day before, and the day before, and would likely do this tomorrow, and next week, and the week after that.

Her daily life had frustratingly returned to its monotonous routine the moment Destiny Islands returned from the deepest pits of the Darkness. Except where she could pass the time with Riku and Sora, she now found herself alone without her two best friends. They were off with pressing matters. She was home alone, in a place that felt less and less like home each passing day. She should be busy across the stars, saving worlds, releasing captive hearts and keeping evil at bay. Not taking classes and wondering what Sora and Riku were up to, hogging the adventure they all promised to have together, only for themselves.

She didn't feel like this until very recently, forgetting then remembering Sora. It relieved her that she could recall on what the huge gap in her memory was, but then it quickly frustrated her. Her mood improved at the thought of her friends being okay, but it made her anxious when she realized the daunting task placed on his shoulders, and her inability to assist him. The same went for Riku, with his pathway to Kairi taking him in Darkness.

Neither of them came to see her or the island, despite having vessels that reduced interplanetary travel to a mere whim. Neither of them bothered to contact her. And there was just nothing she could do about it but go to class and wait for adventure to find her.

She turned the corner on Moonlit Alley to walk two more blocks to her residence on Lakeshore Drive. She dropped her finished popsickle stick in the rubbish bin on the corner, and continued her stride. Instead of meeting an empty brick pathway, she was met with a tall six foot figure of a man. Staring at her, wearing midnight blue robes, with a wizards hat adorned with gold star and moon symbols. His gray beard dominated his front, his lack of wrinkles gave the impression that his face never cracked a smile, or any discernible emotion.

One thing was for sure, he wasn't from around here.

Luckily, he picked up on that in his tone, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible. "Excuse me, are you the Princess of Heart, Kairi?"

Each time Kairi heart the term "princess of heart" she found that she was never fond as to what happened afterwards. "Yes." She began to shift her feet to move backwards in case. She could throw her bag at him to make a temporary distraction, and then sprint in the opposite direction.

He noticed Kairi stir. As expected, he was a weird man from a different world. Also she was desirable, not only for her heart, but her connection to Sora and Riku put her in a constant state of peril.

"Do not fret, please. I am Master Yen Sid. I am a Sorcerer from another world. I taught King Mickey everything he knows, and I recently met Sora."

"And… what do you want with me?" she asked, with a little more fear in her voice than she would have liked.

"There is a world that is about to be consumed by the heartless, an important world I have been keeping my eyes on for a long time. Many lives are in peril." His deep voice explained.

"Why can't Sora get to it? He's the one out there having all the fun." She winced at her last statement. She didn't mean for that to come across… so enraged. But in fairness, she lacked an outlet for her anger.

"Sora, the Keyblade Warrior is…" Yen Sid trailed off.

 _Donald Duck stood tapping his right foot, his eyes scanning a sheet of parchment._ _"I'm telling you, we need to go that way!" The pale duck pointed in seemingly an arbitrary direction, across a large plain of tall grass as far as the eye could see._

 _Sora snatched the map. "Give me that! I think we need to go back and make a left."_

 _Goofy leaned over Sora's shoulder. "Which way is left?"_

" _East!" Donald screamed._

 _Sora scoffs, "No, Goofy means west, because we're going North."_

 _Goofy scratched his head. "Oh? I thought we were walking to the uh…. South."_

" _Why would the King go South?" Donald asked._

" _No, the King seems like a 'go North' kind of guy to me." Sora replied, eyeing the map. "I think we should keep looking for Riku instead."_

 _Donald took the map. "Riku is in the dark realm! King Mickey wouldn't be in that place for long at all!"_

" _Why would he escape and not Riku!?" Sora protested._

" _Gawsh. We must be lost." Goofy sighed._

Yen Sid sighed heavily. "Sora is a bit... lost at the moment." Yen Sid finished.

Sora was never good at reading maps. Or… anything requiring a significant amount of brain power. "Well… King Mickey's unavailable too?" she said, remembering their brief encounter.

 _King Mickey entered a large underground mine. It's brown hard walls had a diamond in it every few feet, and in front of him by several yards were at least seven dwarves, dwarves singing songs, each swinging a pickax to the tune._

 _He scratched his head, confused. What part about this type of manual labor made you want to sing? Certainly it didn't seem like forced labor... "Excuse me fellas, can you tell me-"_

 _Their song ceased immediately, and one of the screamed out. "DIAMOND THIEF!"_

 _And before the King could blink, each of the dwarves had run and hidden deeper into the mine, or rolled away on mine carts._

" _Awh Gosh. I'm lost."_

"The King is also… a bit lost."

Kairi had to finish covering her bases. "And of Riku?"

"Erm…"

 _Riku walked through the dark forest once more, thick vines he had to avoid tripping over, a marshy mess of ground he found impossible to gain stable footing on. The stifling heat. The swarming mosquito. And the constant smell of gorillas._

 _He arrived at a lagoon, one where Hippopotamus lay. Their big bodies submerged in the murky water, the only part of their bodies exposed above the water was their large flat backs. He would have to… leap on their backs to continue moving forward?_

 _Riku was fed up. "Where the hell am I!?" he screamed_.

"He is… lost as well." Yen Sid replied.

Kairi raised an eyebrow. If he was an impostor or someone that wanted to take advantage of her being a Princess of Heart, he'd have done that earlier. Furthermore, if he truly wanted to deceive her, he would have come up with a much better lie than all three holders of the Keyblade being lost at the exact same time.

"Then… what do you need of me?" she asked.

"You also have a power of wielding the Keyblade. It goes unnoticed with you being Princess of Heart. As you can imagine, being a Princess, the risk of you being on the front lines of the battlefield against the darkness is too great of a risk."

"So you want me to fight the Heartless? Kairi asked.

Yen Sid shook his head. "Not exactly. You are not an experienced fighter, I will not rudely ask so much of you. But rather, simply seal the Keyhole. The residents of the world will fight the darkness."

Kairi almost leapt right through his arms. She so badly wanted to make that jump. To finally contribute. To finally take the role of hero, instead of a plot device. To take control of her own fate in the cosmic war between the Light and the Darkness. She extended her arm, and she opened her heart. She had no idea why, it just felt like something she should do, as if something inside her was calling out.

Whatever she was calling for, it answered. With a bright flash of light, her right hand grasped the hilt of a Keyblade.

"Oh my!" she stared at it, eyeing it up and down. The handle of her blade was a deep pink, the ring surrounding it was a vibrant green. The shaft of her blade was a deep black, with a yellow mark appearing to be a vine on its side. A single rose was where the handle and shaft connected.

"Rumbling Rose." Yen Sid nodded. "Yes yes. It certainty fits."

Having her very own Keyblade was all the confirmation Kairi needed. "I'm ready, Master Yen Sid!" she readied for battle.

"Very well then." He said, and walked towards her. "We shall set off at once!"

A high pitched female voice hit Kairi's ears. "Hold on, just a minute!"

As she looked around for the source, she was then met with three different, fluttering and flying… old ladies. They each appeared from the sky, and made circles around Kairi, as if they were surveying her.

"Oh no no no. You can't go yet." The tallest one said, draped in red robes.

"Those clothes just wont do." The plump one said, dressed in blue robes.

"No Keyblade master is going to wear those anywhere." The green one criticized.

Kairi looked at them confused. I mean… maybe she couldn't fight in a white blouse and a plaid mini skirt. But her school clothes didn't look bad at all! "Excuse me, who are-"

"Never mind that dear, these clothes must go." The red one replied.

"Quick fast and in a hurry." The blue one agreed.

"Then it's settled. All together now dears!" the blue one said.

They each stopped their circular flight path around Kairi, and stood in front of her in a single file line. They each pointed their wands at her, and with a flick, a jet of light hit Kairi.

With another blinding flash of light, she underwent another change, though not quite as monumental as the first. The school robes had been exchanged for another set of clothes. She donned a simple, peach colored dress that stretched from the top of her breasts, to the mid of her thigh. Each of her curves were hugged tightly, the material both flexible to accommodate her range of motion, and sturdy enough to protect her most vital areas. She spun her body around, savoring the look, the wind played with her beautiful red locks. The fairies swooned in response.

How a sun dress was supposed to help her in combat… she would never know. It was cute though.

Yen Sid brushed off the distraction.

"Yes, yes ladies she looks ravishing." He pushed the fairies to the side as they showered each other with praise. "We must be going. We don't want to be out at night on this world. Plus-" he checked his watch. "We have a ride to catch."

Kairi nodded. She found herself unable to resist a smile as Yen Sid placed his hand on her shoulder, and within a second, a large * _Crack_ * filled the air. The uncomfortable sensation of being pulled from behind her navel made her queasy. The colors of the world appeared to melt way, and then warp and contort, forming a beautiful rainbow one second, and a sickly, ugly mix of gray another.

Three seconds felt like forty seconds, and Kairi found herself in the middle of a road. Her eyes adjusted from the soft orange of her sky of her home to the bright overhead sun, covering the semi-arid, dust bowl she found herself in. Behind her she noticed the road twist and turn, heading down in elevation, leading to a sandy beach, with a bridge connecting a roofed structure to the shore. She wondered what that was...

But if this beach, and this desert were all that this world consisted of, then wouldn't this journey would be rather boring?

"Excuse me, Mr. Yen Sid?"

"Yen Sid is fine." he replied.

"Didn't you said we had a… ride to catch?" Kairi asked.

"Oh, worry not."

 _ **/screech**_

The sound of screeching tires, and the smell of burnt rubber filled Kairi's nose as her skin was mere inches from a speeding black vehicle. If it had stopped any later she'd have been flattened! Yen Sid couldn't have put them on the banks of the road!?

One male stepped from the car, his smooth voice somehow putting Kairi at ease. "Well, I daresay Noct needs a break driving."

"Thanks, Loverboy. Can't go an hour without almost killing _someone_." This voice was more rugged, deeper.

"Whatever, my driving isn't bad. Sorry I can't control people standing literally in the road. We're fine."

A blonde one half hung out of the backseat. "Speak for yourself! I almost dropped my camera!"

Kairi looked at the four males, and finally to Yen Sid, who she sensed smiled for the first time in a long time.

"Right on time."

* * *

Thank you all for reading.

This fic is something I'm just writing for some fun. I'm working on two full length novels, one of which focuses on multiple characters talking in many of the scenes, so to help practice I figured the Chocobros could help me out. One of them focuses on a Female Lead with a group who she is unfamiliar with, all of whom are friends already, so I borrowed Kairi. This mini series felt too good to just sit on my hard drive collecting virtual dust, so I decided to make my Fanfiction account un-retire, haha.

Also, I hated Kairi's pink Keyblade in KH2, which is why I retconned it. She seems more of a Rumbling Rose girl anyways, haha. Besides, it's fanfic, nobody cares, lol.

Again, this is for fun and practice. As such it focuses mostly on the smaller nuances of my writing, such as voice, dialogue mechanics, flow and pacing. Forgive any spelling mistakes. Let me know if any of these things strike you as particularly good or bad. I hope to see you in the next one!


	2. An Otherworldly Meeting

**Chapter Two**

The flames dissipated. The dust settled. The strange creatures stopped appearing.

A blonde male thumped on his rear, panting heavily on the scorched earth. "I thought that would never end! I thought we'd die of exhaustion here."

Using his tatooed left arm, to wipe sweat from his brow. Being the tallest, most muscular, and most opinionated of the group, wasted no time in chastising the rest of his party. "Between that and Prince Charming's poorly aimed fire spell, I don't know which was going to kill me first."

"I did warn you all. That's what _duck_ means." A black haired youth stood, brushing soot off of his clothes. "How can Daemons be roaming around in the daytime?"

The fourth male stood tall, cleaning his glasses free of soot. "Noct, going forward, we will have to debate what adequately qualifies as a warning. As for the creatures, I don't think these are the same Daemons we're used to fighting when the sun goes down. These creatures were not nearly as strong, just large in number. And, dare I say? Cute, in some respects?"

"Some weird kind of magic, Ignis?" the tattooed one asked.

He replaced the silver wire frames on his face. "No, I can't say that this is." He appeared to be stumped. "This seems entirely foreign."

The sitting male, Prompto Argentum sighed as audibly as he could. "Dino better appreciate this stone. He really owes us big this time! Leading us into whatever the hell this is."

"Damn right." Prince Noctis brushed the soot from his hands on the rear of his cropped pants, and inhaled sharply. "Got the rock, Gladio?"

"Oh yeah. How much of a profit do you think he makes off of these stones?"

Noctis turned his lip in disgust. "Probably a fortune, seeing as he doesn't have to pay for labor."

Gladiolus sneered. "I mean, _you_ are the one that technically volunteered us."

Prompto looked at the trio before him. "Can we focus here? There are Daemons spawning in the day!"

Ignis nodded. "It is indeed of concern. However, seeing as these are of the weaker variety, we would be better off passing the task of eliminating these creatures off to the Hunters. Our time would be better spent tracking down the 'why' of this anomaly."

"Good. Let's drop this damn thing off and regroup." Noctis replied, placing his hand on his hip. "I'm starving."

"I could go for a meal!" Prompto seconded, rising to his feet.

"Seems like it's settled then." Ignis replied.

The four man team retreated to their car, the Royal Vessel aptly titled the Regalia. Driving through the semi-arid dust bowl, heading to the coastal beach of Gualdin Quay, Crown Prince Noctis let his thoughts get the better of him while driving. To be fair, driving is so dull to him he tends to drift off in thought anyway, but these days he had a lot more on his mind.

Their search for more power, seeking Royal Tombs containing powerful weapons passed down by past Kings, had plateaued for the past few weeks. No leads. Cold trails. Just a group of hamsters spinning in a wheel. Sure, they had found three. One hidden in a glacier behind a waterfall, one that a mysterious man led them to, and another in an old mineshaft, but that was all. One was in an active volcano. Another was in a tower that had recently been ransacked, and they had trouble getting leads on any others at all. The Hunters dispatched across the land were met with no success. The team had tried mightily to maintain a low profile, because as is, Noctis did not have enough power to seriously entertain an assault on the Empire. This meant avoiding their ugly bases populating his once beautiful landscapes. Furthermore, the God of Water, the Leviathan was no sure shot to give Noctis aid if and when they arrived to their bigger goal of sailing to the Island of Altissia.

And now he had more crap to deal with.

It has been three days since these odd, dark purple creatures showed up in the daytime. At first, Noctis and his team handled them with quickness and urgency, thinking nothing much of their weakness. But after consistent sightings, there was no way they could be the same Daemons that roamed the lands at night. Daemons usually wait for enemies to show up, only the deadliest ones seek prey on the roads. These new creatures, most looking like large ants, roamed the landscape, as if they were looking for something. Having no idea what these new things even were to begin with, the team hadn't even the slightest clue where to even begin to tackle the issue.

In short, they had hit a wall.

His thoughts were interrupted shortly.

 **/screeeeech**

Noctis rounded a corner and saw two people standing directly in the middle of his path and thanked the heavens he wasn't going faster, otherwise he would either flatten them or get the Regalia stuck in sand.

His heart smashed repeatedly against his ribcage, staring at the people in front of him. An… old man and a girl in a pink dress?

Ignis adjusted his glasses. "Well, I daresay Noct needs a break driving."

Gladiolus shook his head, and grabbed Noct by the shoulder, his fingers tight into the Prince's bones. "Thanks, _Loverboy_. Can't go an hour without almost killing _someone_."

Noctis snapped back, "Whatever, my driving isn't bad. Sorry I can't control people standing literally in the road. We're fine." Besides, what idiots stand in the middle of a major highway!?

"Speak for yourself!" Prompto cried. "I almost dropped my camera out the Regalia!"

Ignis exited the car. "I think I'll take the driving duties." He muttered to Noctis. "Excuse me sir and Madam, are you hurt? Or perhaps lost?" Ignis asked, also confused at their choice of positioning. Besides, who would be caught dead in the middle of this area with no car? The nearest settlement was at least an hour drive away, how did they manage to even get here?

The girl looked to the man, towering over her, draped in blue robes. "No." His voice was deep, raspy. "We are exactly where we need to be."

"Cryptic much?" Prompto muttered into Noctis' ear.

Gladiolus followed Ignis and walked towards the pair. "Can we help you?"

"Prince Noctis Lucius Caelum." The man said. "There is something grave which requires your attention. And the attention of your Royal Caravan in tow."

"And who are we speaking to?" the Prince asked, while glaring. This man looked weird enough to be the cause of summoning the odd creatures populating his landscape. He would love to take his anger out on him.

"I am Master Yen Sid. I am a Sorcerer from another world." He proclaimed. "This is Kairi, she is a Princess of Heart, and holds the key to saving your world from the Heartless."

The confused looks of the four males shocked Kairi. But then again, it wasn't long ago where if someone appeared on her island and told them that they were from another world, she would have given them the same look.

"Hi." she nervously greeted, trying to wave as confidently and friendly as she could. She felt she failed in both respects.

"Heartless? Those black things that look like ants?" Gladiolus asked.

"And sock monkeys with silver helmets!" Prompto interjected.

 _They do look like sock monkeys_! Kairi thought.

Yen Sid spoke again. "Yes. The Heartless are darkness incarnate. And if unchecked soon, will eat the Heart of this world and destroy it. Prince Noctis, you and Princess Kairi working together can keep your world safe."

Noctis folded his arms. "Sure, under one condition."

"Hm?"

"Can we… not have this conversation in the middle of the road?" he asked.

The entire party looked around, and indeed, having this conversation in the middle of a road in the heart of an arid dust bowl would be a bad idea.

"I see." Yen Sid nodded. "Well, we should move this to a more appropriate place. You all were heading to Galdin Quay, correct?"

Noctis looked confused again. "Wait how did you know that-"

On instant, all the boys had a sensation of being pulled by their navels and seemingly launched through the air. They were surrounded by a colorful rainbow of colors one moment, and then an ugly grey the next. Their next sensation was their feet hitting pavement. Their noses smelling saltwater. Their eyes being blinded by the blazing sun overhead reflecting off the clear blue waters.

Kairi admired the landscape with a smile plastered across her face. The lush beach and fine sand. The building right over the water that looked like a restaurant and hotel. The clear tides hitting the shore. It was at once just like her own beach, but at the same time nothing she had seen before. It was beautiful!

Prompto climbed over the side of the Regalia and crashed into paved parking lot. "I think I'm gonna be sick." He groaned.

Noctis exited the car and leaned on the hood. His black eyes met the stoic eyes belonging to this "Yen Sid." Noctis commanded, "Explain."

Yen Sid nodded, now having the full attention of Noctis and his team.

"I am from another world. As is Kairi. Each living world has a heart, and a door that leads to it. The Heartless feed upon the Hearts of both man, and planets. This is their only goal."

Ignis raised his hand, and was acknowledged by the Sorcerer. "If I may, Sorcerer. How come we haven't seen these creatures before?"

"Previously, your world was disconnected from the others. Now , following the passing of King Regis, and subsequent loss of your Crystal, your world is now connected, and open for the Heartless."

"What did King Regis have to do with keeping the Heartless out? Prompto asked.

"That question has two answers. The Crystal you used to keep your Crown City safe also held the properties to keep your world disconnected, preventing the Heartless from entering. The second part, was that to utilize this ability, your father was a warrior of a weapon called the Keyblade."

 _Would_ _Noctis_ _ever hear the full story of anything before his father died?_

"What's a Keyblade?" he asked.

"Kairi?"

"Oh!" Kairi nodded at her apparent que. She held her arm in front of her, and focused once more. With a flash of white light, her Rumbling Rose Keyblade appeared in her hand once more.

"Oh, _bad ass_!" Prompto oogled.

"That's a sight." Ignis replied, impressed. He hunched over Kairi's shorter stature to get a closer look."It's summoned with magic much like our own, I see."

Noctis squinted at the weapon as he examined it. "It's more like a Key blunt object than a blade."

 _It IS more of a blunt object than a blade!_ Kairi agreed. Then again, was unsure whether this was a complement, an insult, or the Prince just being jealous.

Yen Sid pressed on. "The Keyblade has the ability potential to seal The Door to the world's hearts, keeping it safe from the Heartless, and also is the only weapon to dispel the Heartless."

"So why didn't my father do it then?" Noctis asked.

"There was no need." Yen Sid replied. "He took his precaution in keeping it safe by keeping it at the heart of a Royal Tomb."

Gladiolus understood the task at hand. "Which would explain why Princess Kairi and Noct need each other. Noctis to open the tomb, and Kairi to seal this door."

"Wait, hold on." Prompto said. "You said only the Keyblade to banish the Heartless. But we've been battling them and they've been going away."

Noctis agreed. "Yeah, so what makes that key sword so needed?"

Yen Sid stroked his beard. "Keyblade." He corrected. While Heartless can be defeated using your conventional weapons, to truly defeat them requires the tainted heart sealed within them to be unlocked. Which can only be done with the Keyblade."

Gladiolus nodded. "I see. Earlier you said Kairi was a Princess of Heart. What exactly does that mean?"

"There are seven Princesses of the Purest heart. When they come together, they have the power to open the Door to Darkness. This will give them the power to reign over all worlds, without penalty, as there is no darkness in their hearts for the darkness to latch onto. They will not become a heartless should they lose their heart, as they possess no darkness."

Kairi interjected. "I lost my heart once."

The four males gasped and seemed concerned and intrigued immediately.

"What!?"

"What was it like!?"

"You can't be serious."

"How does that happen?"

Yen Sid suppressed a grin. "Kairi is only a recent in her acquisition of the Keyblade. Her fighting skills are not as seasoned as yours."

"Which is why you need us!" Prompto said with a smile.

Gladiolus sneered. "No, _us_."

"Mutually beneficial for all parties." Yen Sid said. "She can seal the Keyhole, the Prince gains a new power and this becomes one less world the Heartless can claim."

Ignis pondered. "Well I do see this as being the most pressing thing on our list. The faster we remove the Heartless, the less potential for Civilians to get hurt." He turned his attention to Kairi. "Sounds splendid, we will be able to accommodate and make you feel right at home as much as we can, Princess."

She smiled. "Thank you!"

Ignis returned the smile, which made Kairi's smile even wider.

She had to contain her excitement, but it was quickly turning impossible. She was on another world, and could go exploring! This place was so much bigger than Twilight Town, and much better than the dilapidated old castle of Hollow Bastion. Wait 'till she got to tell Sora and Riku about this!

"Where is the entrance to the tomb exactly?" Noctis asked.

"If I recall correctly, it is carved into the hillside, a few kilometers north of Lestallum."

"Those hillsides are too steep to just hike and comb the area. Plus that area is too large to travel by foot." Ignis mumbled.

"Yeah, not all of us are rock climbing nature freaks like Gladio." Prompto quipped.

"You should just be lucky I'm taking that as a complement." Gladiolus replied.

I guess the best way is is to comb the hillside by Chocobo."

"KAIRI!" Prompto shouted, his excitement getting the best of him, grabbing her hand and leaping up and down. "You are going to LOVE Chocobos! They are just the cutest! They're so awesome!"

Once more, she could not help but smile, but mostly out of amusement.

"Looks like you're stuck with us." Gladiolus made a few steps to approach Kairi. "Gladiolus."

She shook hands with this giant, muscular, attractive behemoth of a man.

"Pleasure to meet you." She also noted that he didn't grip her hand particularly firmly, no doubt fearing he could crush her palms if he really wanted to.

"Ignis Scientia." The one with wire rimmed frames bowed to Kairi, no doubt taking her royal moniker of "princess" to heart.

"The pleasure is all mine." She returned the bow.

"My name is Prompto!" he shouted, forcing himself to return as the center of attention.

"Nice to meet you Prompto." she said.

The final member of the team walked to her. "Noctis." He simply said. His tone was neither direct, nor disinterested. Just simply… there.

"I look forward to working with you." She smiled.

He grinned. It was faint, but it was there!

Yen Sid cracked an eerie smile. "Well, since the introductions are given, and the mission is briefed. I shall let you all get to it."

Kairi and Noctis turned to Yen Sid. "Wait! Aren't you going to-"

With a crack echoing through the air, the otherworldly sorcerer was off.

"-help… at all…." The two slouched and looked to the ground, dejected.

Prompto sighed. "Talk about an exit."

"It's always the older men that have no problem just passing assignments down." Gladiolus responded.

"Well, I think we should think of a plan of action." Ignis replied. "Perhaps over lunch?"

Noctis sighed. "Yeah. I'm starving. Think we should take the day off and go fishing."

"Oh, and by 'we', you mean, 'you.'" Gladiolus asked suspiciously.

Prompto smiled widely again. "Then I guess that means I get to play Kings Knight in the meantime. It's double XP week!"

"Honestly."Ignis sighed. "Kairi, are you a fan of seafood? Galdin makes quite a good fillet. Caught straight from the ocean."

Prompto rushed to Kairi's side and put his arm around her shoulders. "And the dessert is amazing! There's this one cake that will make you melt!"

Gladiolus sat by amused. "Goodness, you two are making this like a vacation for her." He chuckled.

Noctis walked by her, and looked at her with a faint grin. "Well, I guess since we're stuck with her, she may as well enjoy her time here. Hopefully Ignis decides that there is finally room for 'fun' in the budget."

The Princess of heart smiled. A beautiful, radiant, genuine smile.

"Sounds great!"


	3. Kings Knight

**Chapter Three**

 **Kings Knight**

The Regalia glided effortlessly down the roads, commanded by Ignis Scientia, by far and away the most responsible of the party. The group relaxed in Galdin for the evening, further plotting their expedition. Ignis scrounged enough cash from the budget to allow Kairi to sleep in a Caravan, while the rest of the males camped on the nearby beach. The entirety of the day would be spent driving, reaching the city shortly after sunset with the amount of stops they planned to make today.

A breakfast of fresh fruit, stocking up on potions and snacks, a stop for lunch and dinner, and undertake a low level hunt (or two) to help Kairi acclimate to fight. While the Crownsguards certainty minimized any chance Kairi had of getting hurt, Gladiolus and Noctis figured that just dragging her and her Key around would be a liability. But if they managed to keep the number of bathroom breaks to a minimum, they could make it safely to meet with Iris in Lestallum.

Lunch at one of The Crows Nest's in the Ketter Highlands. Dinner in Rydelle Ley. Prompto wanted to head towards Hammerhead as much as possible, likely to refuel and see Cindy, but Ignis decided against it. Traveling in the lush, green landscapes of Cleigne would be best for Kairi to see, plus, the sun wouldn't be beating on them painfully and they could let the top down, and even better, the forecast showed no signs of rain coming.

Although at the moment, the morning sun over roads was pleasant. Although the view, at least from Ignis' perspective, was not. Each time Ignis looked to his right, he was introduced to the view of Prompto's ass.

The blonde used his knees on the seat, and his torso over the back of the seat, to talk to Kairi and Gladiolus sitting in the backseat, with Noctics sitting on the surface of the trunk, his feet on the expertly crafted seats, much to Ignis' dismay. "So, Kairi." Prompto said. "Tell me, what's your world like?"

Kairi thought, her hair ruffling in the breeze taking a hold of Prompto's heart. Or… at least his thirst. His heart was quickly running out of room between Cindy and Aranea.

"Well, its…" _How do you describe something so normal_ , she thought? "It's a small port town, right on the side of a great, big ocean. A few miles out, is a small island where me and my friends used to play all the time. That's kind of it."

Prompto was infatuated. "Oh, that sounds so cool! How many worlds have you been too? What were they like? Did you meet any cool people?"

"Jheez, Prompto." Noctis sneered. "What's with the interrogation?"

"Come on! You mean to tell me you met someone from another world, and you don't have a bunch of questions?"

"Fair point." The prince admitted.

"I don't mind." Kairi said with a giggle. "Well, when I did most of the traveling, my heart was gone. So I only remember bits and pieces. There was this huge castle I was in named Hollow Bastion. And… I remember being in a jungle for a little while. I was on this huge pirate ship!"

That got the attention of the rest of the car.

"Pirates!?" Prompto screamed in glee. "Pirates are real!? You were on a ship with them!?"

"Yep! Eyepatches, hook hands and all."

"NOCT!" Prompto exclaimed. "When we take back the Crown City, can we get a pirate ship!?"

Noctis chuckled. "I mean, I don't see a reason not to. Parade it around the entire country? Use it as my vessel to Altissia."

"Only as long as you aren't the one driving, Noct." Gladio jeered.

"Certainty." Noctis cut his eyes at his sworn shield. "Just as long as you aren't the first mate."

Prompto interjected. "Oh! Oh! Can I be in the Crows Nest!?"

"NO!" the remainder of the car shouted.

"You cant even face the right side of the car, let alone be in charge of total visibility." Noct replied, chuckling.

Prompto's rear thumped down on the front passenger seat. "Better yet, we could have the wedding on the pirate ship!"

"That'd be funny." Gladiolus replied. "I doubt Lady Lunafreya would cosign on it though."

Ignis slowed down before making a left turn at a 3-way intersection. "It would certainly be good for the reception. Considering the table manners of the three of you resembles pirates."

"We've been over this, Specs." Noctis sighed. "The Crows Nest doesn't count as a table."

Kairi giggled, having very nearly the same criticism of Sora's table manners. "Oh, there's a wedding?" she asked.

Gladiolus chose to answer. "Loverboy back there," he gestured to Prince Noctis, "he's the reason we left the Crown City of Insomnia. He's getting hitched to the Oracle. Lady Lunafreya."

"Oracle?" Kairi asked.

Ignis explained. "Lady Lunafreya is the Orcale, one who communes with the Gods of our world. Plus, she keeps humans from falling prey to becoming Daemons."

"We call it the Starscourge." Gladiolus began. "Think of it as a plague, that wants to turn people and animals into Daemons, and make the nights longer. It eats light. So when it's night, the Daemons are safe to roam the planet. So, we have to stay where there is light. Or, camp in safe havens."

"Then why can't it just eat the light that your cities or havens produce?"

"Well our havens are made safe by an ancient spell, placed on the land by the kings. As for the light," Ignis said. "The Oracle's presence keeps it at bay. We have a crystal granted to us by the Astrals. This crystal is to be protected by the Lucian Royalty, and enables us to battle the Starscourge."

Kairi was enthralled to learn something she had entirely no knowledge of, but it was starting to sound too convoluted. "And the Royalty is-"

"That would be Noct." Prompto said. "And we're gathering Royal Arms, weapons of the old kings, to fend off the Starscourge and the Empire."

 _We really got off track from talking about this wedding._ Kairi thought. "So, the King has to marry the Oracle?"

"Not at all." Ignis said.

"Lady Luna belonged to the nation of Tennebrae." Gladiolus stated. "It was taken over by the Empire, and with Noct being Lucian Royalty, the two getting married served as a peace treaty."

"You said that in past tense." Kairi was quick to notice.

"Well, we were on our way to where she's being held. But our hometown was attacked by the Empire at the peace treaty session. So now we really aren't sure where that stands."

"Oh, I'm- sorry." She knew all too well what losing your homeland is like. Their world still stood, while hers was devoured in it's entirety.

Prompto, finally being dutiful in his co-pilot role, pointed to the vast open desert. "HEARTLESS, THREE O' CLOCK!"

The entire party turned to the right on high alert, and sure enough, saw a pack of heartless striding across the barren landscape. Carefree, as if they owned the place!

"Shall we engage, then?" Ignis asked, slowing the speed of the car, giving the group more time to decide.

"These are same variety we've seen before. Only six in total." Gladiolus surveyed. "I think it would be beneficial to get Princess Kairi in the fighting shape before we undertake that hunt later."

Kairi nodded. "Sounds good to me!" Determination coursing through her voice.

"Splenid." Ignis said, pulling the car to the side of the road.

Gladiolus and Ignis exited the car, and Kairi followed.

The trio walked ten meters close to the Heartless scouring the land, before they realized they were the only ones who exited the vehicle.

"Hey," Gladio started, looking back at the car. "You two aren't going to help?"

Noctis hadn't moved from his sitting position on the trunk of the car. "Well, you look like you guys have it handled. I'm going to play Kings Knight in the mean time." He tapped on his phone, absent of the situation.

"Kings Knight? Really?" Gladiolus asked.

"Well then fine. I'll take Daemon watching duty or whatever." The Prince snapped back. "These "world eating" Heartless don't seem so scary to me."

"Well, there are much bigger ones, usually closer to where the Door is." Kairi said. "These are just the foot soldier kind."

"Then I guess I'll sit back and wait for the bigger ones." He replied breathlessly.

"And of you, Prompto?" Ignis asked.

"Perfect opportunity to snap some pictures. Beautiful day outside." He said, polishing his camera lens.

"Of course." Gladiolius lamented. "Well, we may as well get started."

"Indeed." Ignis replied.

Kairi flicked her right wrist, and the Keyblade appeared, ready to free captive hearts. "Let's!"

Immediately, as if by command, the Heartless stopped their pace. They took notice of Kairi flanked by the two men, and the Keyblade in her right hand. They immediately ran full force at them.

"Alright, Princess." Gladio began. "With a weapon like that, you want to assume a stance sort of like this." He set his feet in the dry dirt. "You want to distribute your weight evenly, across both of your legs. Then hold the blade like-"

Kairi readied a stance, and suddenly the words of the sworn shield of the king fell on deaf ears. Everything sounded quiet, and faded away. She had yet to be in combat with the Keyblade. She hadn't fought alongside anyone, unless it was swinging wooden swords around Destiny Islands.

Yet somehow, she felt that she knew what she was doing. She could recall Riku's beatings on Sora. How he effortlessly won by counterattacking, dodging Sora's relentless offense and striking when his opponent was most vulnerable. Combine that with her seeing how the Heartless move, thriving off of instinct, they can be easily defeated with counterattacks. All she had to do was move and swing, and let the Keyblade do the rest.

Her heartbeat moved faster in preparation, but not distractedly so. Her focus picked up. Although the Heartless were racing toward her and the party, she could see their movements perfectly, and never moved fast enough for her to be unable to keep up.

 _Is this how Sora feels with his Keyblade?_

"-and then you drive it home!"

Gladiolus' voice phased back into her ears as he entered her vision. He approached the three Heartless on the right, all three of them were the weakest "Shadow" variety. With a horizontal swing of his Greatsword, destroyed all three of them on instant.

"Got that, Kairi?" he looked back to the princess.

She didn't understand a word of his instructions. "uh… yes!" she said.

Ignis spoke next, walking towards the remainder of the charging heartless. "It's acceptable if you didn't understand him. Oftentimes it's best to experience these things for yourself."

Ignis summoned a dagger in his left and right hand, and with precise throws at two approaching Heartless, they were defeated on instant.

The final one, a purple one in a suit of armor she could identify as a Solider, turned it's body horizontally and flipped rapidly at Kairi and tripled it's speed, aiming right for her.

"This one is all you, Kairi!" Gladiolus encouraged.

"Kairi, look out!" Ignis warned.

Her focus was so intense it was almost tangible. The Heartless was spinning swiftly towards her, and she focused her weight on her feet, loosening her hips and torso, ready to strike back.

With a swing upwards, she heard a sound she could only describe as a small bell hitting a wall, and the Heartless stopped in midair, it's attack ceased.

Quickly, while it was at chest level, she reset her feet, and held her Keyblade as if it were a baseball bat, and gave it a mighty swing.

"Take thiiiiiiiis!" She roared.

Her Keyblade hit the enemy and it flew through the air, flying at dozens of feet per second. It almost looked as if it were going to fly over the nearby mountain, before it collapsed into an orb of black smoke, and vanished.

"None the worse for wear." Ignis said, adjusting his glasses.

"Hunh, looks like the Princess is stronger than I gave her credit for."

Kairi smiled and shrugged, taken aback by her prowess as well. "What can I say?"

* * *

The hunt later that day went faster than expected. While getting rid of a particularly rambunctious herd of dual horns was an ambitious task, Kairi was up to it.

She was far from the girl that needed protecting that Yen Sid implied she was. Her technical ability wasn't good, sure. Yet she could defend as a seasoned warrior, and her wild swing with the blade more often than not found it's target. But she knew, on some level, what she was doing. She compensated by her lack of experience by being a defensive fighter, to lessen the burden on the four members of her party, allowing them to fight without much worry of her health. There was one instance where Gladiolus vertically slashed a dual horn, nearly planting his blade six feet deep in the ground in the process, and Kairi leaped off his back to come down and strike it harder. When the group was flanked, she had Ignis toss her magic flasks, and she hit them towards the dualhorns, damaging them with the flame, and using the fire on the landscape as a barrier to keep them from advancing. A Magictec engine tried to descend upon the group, and Kairi's quick thinking she pointed her Keyblade at it, and with a bright ray of light pierced the ship's hull, resulting in the ship sent crashing to the ground.

There was certainly work to be done, but she functioned so well as a team member, it was difficult to imagine she hadn't had much experience. She attributed this to knowing the team relationships well, and figuring out exactly how she fit into that. Gladiolus was the real muscle of the group, hitting hard and hitting often. Noctis' blade warping made him specialized in crowd control, changing the landscape of the battle as it went on. Prompto's expertise with weapons suited him for long range combat. (Even if he never stayed out of the way to avoid unnecessary damage.) This left Ignis the role of holding the team together, watching Gladio's back, protecting Prompto, and knowing when to attack or defend based on the openings Noct provided. Kairi assisted and slid into this roll much the same, parrying attacks and keeping herself safe.

Ignis and her chuckled when she said "I had no idea what I was doing the entire time." Maybe the ability was in her the entire time and she never needed to use it. Maybe she was a quick leaner. Maybe the Keyblade did it all on it's own. Or maybe she actually didn't know what she was doing, but after seeing Sora utilize the full power of _his_ Keyblade, she _felt_ that she knew what she was doing.

Maybe that was all the difference.

Sunset arrived, and the team fell out into the streets of Lestallum, the beautiful city carved into the side of a great mountain. Kairi could see the lights flash, the street vendors and the activity, and the hustle and bustle of the big city inviting her to explore it all.

"I hate that drive." Noctis sighed, stretching his limbs as he exited the Regalia.

"I'm just happy we finally get a room." Prompto said. "My back was starting to hurt from all that camping."

Ignis replied as he exited the car as well, counting themselves fortunate for arriving a few minutes before the sun took it's daily leave behind the horizon. "Our ability to acquire lodging tonight is squarely because of our camping the previous three nights. If you want more lodging, perhaps you should take part in more hunts."

Prompto's smile was wiped clean. "Oh, that's it. Kill things to have a good night's sleep. Seems legit."

Gladiolus moved Prompto to the side to exit the car. "Wuss." He mumbled.

Kairi took her first steps on the pavement of the grand city of Lestallum. "It's beautiful!"

"Welcome to Lestallum, Princess Kairi." Ignis said, adjusting his glasses.

"You don't have to call me Princess, Ignis." She said, her eyes still taking in the sights.

"Noted."

"Let's grab some dinner." Gladio said. "Upset we didn't get a chance to get some burgers at the Crows' Nest. Damn Magitec Troopers making a mess of our schedule."

"Perfect time for some cup noodles then, huh Big Guy?" Noctis said, Kairi noticing that his tone was perfectly stated to sneakily attempt to get a rise out of Gladiolus.

Which went noticed. "Don't kid yourself." He turned to Noctis and said. "It's _always_ a good time for cup noodles. Spicy with shrimp. All you need to make it through the day."

Kairi didn't quite understand. "Erm… cup… noodles?"

The entire party gasped.

"Do they not have cup noodles where you are from!?" Prompto asked in shock.

"Uh… we have noodles? Certaintly not in a cup though."

"Jeez, what do you even eat over there?" Noctis asked.

The Princess of Heart gave it some thought. "We have this really good ice cream!"

"What flavor?" the men asked in unison.

"Sea-salt ice cream!" she replied.

"Like… ice cream, flavored like salt?" Prompto asked.

"From the ocean?" Gladiolus asked.

"Sounds awful." Noctis sighed.

Kairi hung her head in shame. "But… it's super good though."

"GLADDY!" a voice shrieked.

Sprinting from the city interior came a girl, slightly shorter than Kairi. She donned an all-black uniform similar to the one worn by the team.

"I was staring to worry you all weren't going to make it tonight!" she said.

"Yeah, we got kind of knocked off schedule." Gladiolus said.

Prompto leaned in. "I mean… since Noctis was the driver part of the day, I guess you could say it was… _Noct_ , off schedule?"

The entire group looked at Prompto, stunned in silence.

Gladiolus quickly moved on before he threw Prompto across the road and into traffic. "Iris, this is Kairi, a Princess from another world. Kairi, this is Iris, she's my little sister."

Iris smiled at Kairi, piercing Kairi's nervousness. "He forgot to mention 'a member of the Crownsguard.'" Iris extended a hand to Kairi. "Pleasure to meet you! I initially thought they picked you up as part of a fetch quest like they did some stranded man a few weeks ago. You're a lot cuter than he was!"

Kairi and Iris shook hands. "Thanks! I hope I smell better too." Kairi giggled.

"So what brings you here to our town? Oh wait, our world! Excuse me, haha" Iris asked.

"Well you guys have Heartless running around, so I'm here to keep them from devouring your world."

Iris looked confused.

Ignis stepped in and cleared the confusion up. "The Heartless are a type of Daemon. They're darkness reincarnate, and they eat worlds."

Iris understood, but just a tad. "Oh ok. Well no, none of them have appeared here."

"Good, one less thing I have to do." Noctis said. "Let's get some food. I'm starving."

"Some cup noodles sound like the best option." Gladio said.

Ignis made a few taps on his phone. "We can afford to take the ladies out for some real noodles."

"Iggy. They are real noodles," Gladio sounding as serious as he could.

Noctis walked into the city. "Well whatever, I could eat whatever. I just need to harvest before the day ends."

Kairi was confused once more. "Harvest?"

Iris sighed. "It's this game they play."

"And millions of others worldwide!" the Prince added defensively.

"It's Kings Knight!" Prompto said. "And it's double XP week!"

None of those words helped Kairi understand any further.

"Uh. That game you two were playing in the morning today?"

"It's a mobile RPG game." Gladiolus responded.

"Oh, I haven't played much video games." Kairi said.

Iris handed Kairi her phone. "Well, if you're so inclined, you can try it out on my phone."

* * *

"I have to take cover!" Prompto screamed, writhing about on the bed.

"No, just a little more and the boss is done with!" Gladio shouted, hunched over on a chair, his phone between his knees.

"We've almost broken our record score! Don't let up!" Noctis exclaimed, pacing worriedly about in the room.

"Pushing forward!" Kairi declared, tapping furiously on the phones screen while sitting on the floor, her legs tucked to her side.

Ignis sat on a chair beside Gladiolus, his legs crossed, and making no noise at all, but his fingers moved furiously.

"ALMOST THERE!" Prompto said.

"Pushing forward!" Noctis screamed.

"Yes, Yes YES!" Gladiolus readied himself.

"YES!" the entire room screamed.

Prompto stood up, waving his arms in celebration. Gladiolus and Noctis sighed in sweet relief in her victory. Ignis grinned as he placed his phone on the table, and Kairi rose to her feet and jumped up and down in jubilation.

"We did it!" she screamed.

Sitting in a corner, reading a book, Iris made her presence felt for the first time this evening. "Are you all quite finished?" she joked.

Prompto responded with "It's the little things that get me through the day."

Gladiolus stood up and stretched. "Hell no we're not done. Today, we traveled. Then beat Ulgroth, the Demon Dragon. Tomorrow, it's the heartless and saving the world."

"Yeah, what he said." Noctis added on. He then shared a look and a smile with Kairi. "A hero's work is never done, right?"

She nodded, Sora and Riku flashing across her mind. Their battle across stars and worlds still unfolding, and their paths to cross once more.

"Always!"

* * *

 **Hello all, thank you for reading and reviewing! I didn't expect nearly anyone to read this story when I uploaded it for the first time, so the face people are reading and reviewing it puts a smile on my face. So chapters are going to come out faster now.**

 **Let me know what you like about it, and thanks again for reading. See you in the next one.**


	4. Lestallum

**Chapter Four**

 **Lestallum**

With the exception of Kairi's heart returning to her body, she could never remember waking up so refreshed. But waking up in a King Sized bed, sheets with an obnoxiously high thread count, and taking the hottest, most refreshing shower she was allotted, made her fall into a deep sleep nearly immediately. Never mind that she had to share the bed with Iris, the pair of them slept soundly. The blankets were so big Kairi was allowed to wrap herself in a cocoon and dream away.

She awoke with Iris missing, a note on her pillow for Kairi.

"We'll probably be in the lobby when you wake! Get there fast before they put the breakfast away!"

The princess of heart could not resist taking another quick shower. She returned to her clothes, her dress and undergarments washed.

Her trip to the downstairs reunited the Princess with the Crownsguard. Prompto sat eating a sandwich and playing on his phone, likely reaping the rewards from the raid last night. Opposite him sat Ignis, reading the paper and eating what looked like soup. Gladiolus and Iris sat with them conversing excitedly about something.

"Good morning." Kairi greeted.

The entire table roared in laughter.

"I think you're a little late for _that_ , princess." Gladiolus replied.

Kairi was confused. _Late? Tardy?_ Not in her vocabulary. "What do you mean?"

"Its fifteen past 1." Iris said.

"IN THE AFTERNOON!?"

Iris giggled. "I didn't want to wake you. You looked like you were sleeping so peacefully!"

Prompto jeered, "Yeah, I don't know who's worse at mornings. You or Noct."

As if on que, Prince Noctis descended down the stairs. "Mornings suck." He walked down, exchanging his black fatigues for casual clothes. His messy hair hidden under his ball cap. "If Kairi got to sleep in, I figured royalty should be well rested." He ended with a yawn.

Everyone at the table hung their heads and let out a deep, exasperated sigh.

"Honestly. We should consider ourselves lucky that its not costing us time we could have used to search the hillside." Ignis lamented.

"Oh?" The royal pair of Kairi and Noctis asked in unison.

"We got up early to secure six Chocobos." Gladiolus sighed. "They're apparently all rented and won't be available until the evening."

"Prompto even shed a tear." Ignis snuck in that dig, and reached for his glass of water.

"It was like finding out the cake is a lie!" Prompto explained.

"That throws the schedule off." Noctis sighed, not sounding at all genuinely upset at the inconvenience. "What are we going to do then?"

"Well, rather than waste the day," Ignis began. "I'm going to go to the library. See if i can dig up some aerial photographs to narrow the search."

Gladiolus laid out his plans next. "As for me, I'm going to take Regalia to the station nearby. Little preventative maintenance never hurt."

"Good job, team." Noctis said. "Then that just leaves me to fish in the meantime."

"He's got that look in his eyes again." Prompto sighed.

"What can I do to help prepare?" Kairi asked.

"We can go get supplies." Iris suggested. "Potions and food and stuff. So we can wake up early tomorrow and hit the road. Er- hill."

"Fantastic!" The keyblade warrior smiled and shouted.

"Sounds splendid." Ignis rose to his feet with his empty plate. "Prompto, Noct. If you don't mind, before Gladio takes the car, our camping supplies are due for an inspection. Now's a perfect time to ensure that our journey doesn't have to be halted."

Noctis let out an exasperated sigh of his own. "Yes, father." He sarcastically added.

Iris rose to her feet. "To the market we go, Kairi! It looks so good, you'll love it!"

Kairi followed her new best friend outdoors and into the city center. Iris was correct, Kairi did love the market. The space was wide open and lively, polite people walking between the stalls. The merchants were lively, selling fresh fruits and vegetables, vibrantly colored seasonings, jewelers attracting them with pretty home made necklaces and bracelets courting the attention of both the girls.

"Beautiful ladies, I got some nice looking jewelry!"

"You look like you need a new blade to complement that dress! Take a look at our wares!"

"You look hungry! We got the freshest fruits and vegetables right here!"

The fruit stall had the sweetest and most refreshing berries, the fruit salad made Kairi feel as refreshed as her shower last night. She took a look at more dresses at the clothes stall, but she doubt Yen Sid would let her take home trinkets from a new world, let alone a new dress.

Kairi was in awe as to what a "Gil" was and how Iris could use her phone to transfer it as payment. Kairi had to explain what "Munny" was, explaining to a confused Iris that it was collected as tiny crystals, and not metal coins. They collected potions and food rations consisting of dried meats and nuts. They got more ingredients for Ignis to cook with, like eggs, tomatoes, peppers and rice in case the tomb was big enough for an entire days journey.

"Just wait until you have some of Ignis' cooking. I hear it's the best!" Iris exclaimed.

"I'll ask him if he needs help! I've taken up to cooking recently."

"He needs all the help he can get. The other boys dont help at all." Iris began. "I'm going to check out that jewelry maker. I think I saw something I liked."

They were about ten meters from the stall before Kairi slowed her walk when she felt something cold shudder through her.

She couldn't quite describe it. But her sense of urgency just ramped up. Something was amiss *somewhere*. Instinctually, she felt that she wanted to summon her keyblade and start swinging. Was she having a panic attack? Was they keyblade alerting her to danger? Jheez, it would be so nice if she got a tutorial or *something* to help her. Wasn't there an instruction manual for this damn thing?

She turned her head and her eyes rapidly scanned the area. She was the only one that noticed, or even suspected something was a problem.

"Kairi?" Iris snapped Kairi out of her brief trance. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah." Kairi said, inspiring no confidence. "I'm sorry just got lost in thought. Thought that something was wrong."

Iris held up two necklaces. "It's ok. I was just asking which of these two you liked better. Because this one is black and it matches my outfit. But then there's this one, and I like it more. But it's too-"

Kairi found Iris' voice fading into the background.

Rising from behind Iris head, was a black mass wearing a red colored tunic with a red wizards hat. Yellow eyes. Flames in it's mouth as if it were inhaling for an inferno. The paper bags in Kairi's arms crashed to the cobblestone.

"Iris get down!"

The Princess grabbed her company, and they crashed to the hard ground. A wave of fire launched towards them, missing them narrowly. The flames collided with the stall of a textiles merchant. The wooden structure was reduced to splinters and ash immediately. Screams of panic through the area.

"Heartless!" She screamed, her brief spell of urgency validated.

She rose to her feet quickly, and the red heartless showed it's interior glowing red again.

"Another!" Iris screamed.

A second pulse of flame shot at the pair. Kairi thrust her hands in front of her, and her Keyblade appeared in her hands, and parried the blast right back to the enemy. At such a point blank range it was defeated on contact.

"Iris, are you ok?" She asked, scanning the hectic area for more Heartless. Shopkeepers running, people panicking, it was overwhelming.

Iris quickly got to her feet, on alert as well.

"Yeah. I'm fine." She said, readying her stance. "How are You?"

"My left hand was a little too close to the fireball when I blocked it. Small burn, nothing major." Kairi got into a stance of her own. "There's bound to be more."

The crowd continued to scramble around them, and the two warriors kept their eyes peeled. Then they saw the purple orbs appear in mid-air, and heartless decend from them.

Neo-Shadows appeared, their claws looking for their next victim. Giant bodied heartless with large stomachs, stood tall, their giant arms at their sites. Accompanying them, were the same red fireball spewing Heartless floated in the air, spinning and rotating.

"Damn, this looks tough!" Iris said, facing the squadron. "We have to beat them before they spread through the market!"

Kairi agreed. "Those flying ones need to go first!"

"Right!"

With her fists clenched tight, Iris charged in. Kairi gripped her keyblade tightly and charged forward. The Keyblade wielder leapt in the air and slashed at the first flying heartless. Her attack hit nothing but air.

"Damn!" She hissed.

She had no time to attack again, as two Neo-Shadows collapsed on her position, both directly in front of her. She had to move her feet and erratically swing her upper body around to avoid their swipes with their sharp long claws.

She did this as long as she was able, but the moment she saw an opening, she counterattacked, just like yesterday.

She swung horizontally at the head of the one on her left, and it's knees buckled. Kairi then slashed diagonally down the one on her right, and it flinched.

"Watch your head, Kairi!"

Kairi ducked, watching Iris leap high in the air, and came down on the both of the heartless, striking and defeating them both in one swipe...

 _...using a giant teddy bear as a weapon?_

"What is that!?" Kairi asked, entirely sidetracked.

"Oh!" Iris smiled. "It's a Moogle!"

That explained literally nothing. Just telling her the name, Iris cleared up little.

The pair was snapped out of their brief break, as two fireballs were flung at their feet. They both missed, but were too close for comfort.

Kairi charged at the flying heartless again. Avoiding a swipe of the hand of the large big one, she slid on her legs, (the stone made her regret this immediately) and then reared up and jumped as high as she could.

This time, her swipe connected and the heartless dissipated.

"Yes!" She said in triumph.

Her celebration was cut short. She heard the now familiar sound of a fireball being shot. It's location was directly to her right. This time, reacting appropriately, she used the shaft of her weapon to send the fireball back at the creature, and it disappeared on instant.

Kairi turned to her left to check on the physically biggest of the threats. It's swings keeping the hand-to-hand combat of Iris at bay. Striking it's stomach when available did nothing, as her fists merely bounced off.

"Dammit, what's it gonna take?" Iris grunted.

Kairi scanned it's body as well. There was no way that its entire body was impervious to all types of damage. Maybe it's head? It's back?

She swiftly and quietly moved behind it. Seeing her opportunity, she unleashed a combo of attacks. The first a jab. The second a vertical slash. The final a horizontal slash across it's entire back.

Iris leapt in the air to finish the combination with a strike to it's head.

Unfortunately, they were a step too slow.

Iris thought the attention of the Heartless was taken away. She thought wrong. A single swipe of it's hand at her, and she was brushed off to the side where she crashed to the ground and knocked to the hard stone ground.

Kairi thought her three hit combo was enough to finish the monster. She thought wrong. Her attack was two hits shy. It turned, and the back of its hand smacked the princess silly, knocking her to the ground and sliding into a nearby food stall, hitting her head first on the hard wood.

"Kairi!" Iris screamed, trying to recover from her own attack.

The Heartless smacked it's stomach, and ran full speed at the downed Keyblade warrior.

"Ow..." Kairi mumbled.

Everything was fuzzy and blurry. The world looked like it was spinning.

"KAIRI!" Iris yelled.

The world was slowly coming into some semblance of focus.

"What?"

"KAIRI LOOK OUT!"

Her adrenaline pumped at the warning, her heart racing and forcing the world back into focus. Her eyes brought the world back into focus, as she put her hand on her head to nurse what was sure to be a splitting headache.

Kairi's eyes scaled a Heartless running straight for her. The Big Body Heartless smacking it's stomach and charging right for her. Her body had yet to respond. _Dammit_. All she could do was raise her Keyblade in a defensive position from her prone status. Just needing to protect herself from the oncoming attack.

Fortunately, the Kings Guard arrived.

Gladiolus stepped in front of the Princess of Heart and his shield halted the momentum of the Heartless, sending it stumbling backwards.

"Sorry. Was busy doing a little cleanup of the streets. I hope the court can forgive me for the tardiness."

"Oh, you're pardoned." Kairi said.

Ignis, falling from high, drove his Pole arm through the head of the heartless, going through its entire body en route to the ground, defeating it before his own feet touched the cobblestone ground.

"Apologies for the tardiness, m'lady. The city streets required a-"

Gladio cut him off. "Already said it, Iggy."

Ignis adjusted his glasses using his middle finger, but otherwise remained silent.

"Kairi," Gladiolus turned his attention to her. "Are you alright?"

She shook her head, removing the cobwebs. "Yeah. Just a hard fall."

She took Gladiolus' outstretched hand and rose to her feet. Taking a look around the market was quieter, people were either hiding behind walls, stalls, or had evacuated the market entirely. Iris ran over to the pair, checking on Kairi as well.

"Kairi I'm sorry I got so careless! I let you yet hurt!" She screamed. "I should have covered you!"

"No really," Kairi said. "Its fine. Gladiolus, are there any more Heartless in the city?"

"Yeah. Suddenly they just popped up. We put Prompto to surround the perimeter. Can't have him fire his guns into open crowds in the interior. Noct is the fastest, so he's on city interior."

"And we," Ignis walked over. "Figured they would go to the largest collection of Hearts."

"Seems like we should get going to where they evacuated to." Gladiolus said. "Did you happen to see where most of them went?"

"No." Kairi said.

"They just scrambled." Iris said. "The people could be putting themselves in more danger."

A familiar sound, and in midair, from more purple orbs dropped Heartless. Two Neo-Shadows seeking more prey, and three shadows wearing red bandanas and holding black swords.

Kairi recognizing them from her time in Neverland. "Guys, be careful! These are some of the stronger ones!"

"Just how I like 'em." Gladio traded his shield and sword for a Greatsword.

"Gladiolus! You protect Kairi. You two should be able to handle these.

Kairi and Gladiolus looked to Ignis in confusion. "Should?"

"Iris and I will take off and secure the rest of the city."

Gladiolus shouldered his blade, as if he were asking the Heartless to challenge him. "Understood. Got a rendezvous point in mind?"

"Not necessary. When you're finished, sweep the area. We'll call you when you're finished."

"Got it!"

"Then we'll leave you to it. Let's move, Iris!"

…

….

…..

Prompto thumped on the bed and appeared motionless. "I am BEAT!" he groaned. "I could just fall asleep right-"

"Not without a shower you're not." Ignis chastised.

Noctis slouched into the room. "Ugh. I'm all sticky and gross."

Kairi and Iris walked in next.

Iris says, "Guys, c'mon, you've fought bigger."

"Yeah, but there were more annoying! You shoot one, and like three more show up!" Prompto complained.

"Just be glad there weren't any people hurt." Gladiolus said.

Ignis says, "We can't say that for certain."

Iris says, "Why's that?"

"Well, the Heartless take hearts, not harm the people." Kairi explained. "You'd be better off looking for any missing people.

Gladiolus responds, "So we have to wait until relief efforts get a good head count of all the people that could have been hurt?"

"Even worse, if these things can show up inside the city, then they could be showing up all over the country." Noctis said.

"Damn." the entire room sighed in unison.

"Well, sounds like there's only one thing to do now."

The entire group looked to him. He had their total undivided attention.

"Seems like the only way to stop these things from attacking is to close the door. So as of now, we're going to the door, and the Royal Tomb.

Everyone was taken aback at the King's sudden resolve. "Right now!?"

"We're not going to risk anyone getting hurt. Nor are we going to risk people getting their Hearts taken. I hope the vacation was nice, Kairi, but we hope you're ready to proceed.

Kairi nodded, her heart burning with power and motivation. "Right! Let's get started!"


	5. Forever, They Go On

**Chapter Five**

While the sudden appearance of Heartless didn't cause any casualties in Lestallum, and fortunately yielded only a few injuries, the town descended into a fear and panic at the appearance of monsters in the daytime. Despite the Heartless hardly resembling the monsters that normally populate the world, most people citizens were unable to tell the difference after having gone their entire lives huddled in cities, only venturing outside of them in the daytime.

With their news outlets talking about a brand new threat that even the media didn't fully understand, coupled with an especially fragile public after the fall of the Crown City of Insomnia, simply put, citizens were unwilling and unable to cope with another threat, another loss, and another enemy.

Order desperately needed to be restored. The people needed peace and certainty.

The nation needed a King.

Prince Noctis exited the hotel with determination on his face and a fire in his gut. The Heartless were not welcome here any longer.

At least, even the Heartless were a problem he would solve when he left bed at mid-morning. He had his usual trouble getting out of bed. Old habits die hard, they say.

"Better make tracks. Come on everyone, we're moving."

Following him out of the hotel, Ignis Scientia walked while scribbling in his journal. Making notes. Taking inventory. Cataloging the agenda. "On my way."

Behind Ignis, Gladiolus walked behind him, looking as refreshed as ever. "I had my run this morning, and let me tell ya, I am ready to roll. Chop chop, Prompto."

Fiddling with his camera, and polishing the lens, the blonde male followed his counterparts into the sunlight. "You know I can't go without making sure I get that perfect shot!"

Noctis put his hand on his hip and looked confused. But not too confused, as trying to understand Prompto's love for photography didn't seem worthwhile, after all, the love was so deep he'll take his camera into a volcano, an underground cave, and have it out during active combat.

"It's a dense forest up there." Noctis said. "I doubt the light will give the shot you want." he said.

"Dude, it's me. I always get my shot. Also, did you forget that 'Flash' is a thing?" Prompto asked.

Noctis averted making eye contact with anyone, embarrassed. "N-no."

Gladiolus grunted. "That flash goes off in the middle of a fight and we're going to have a problem."

Prompto replied, "Won't be in the middle specifically. I'm thinking in the very beginning or the very end, or maybe when it's winding down. Gun in one hand, camera in the other."

Gladiolus had no response but to scowl and grunt, which didn't go unnoticed by Ignis.

"Let it go, Gladio." he said.

Noctis checked around before he noticed the party was one member short of a unit. Well, at least their temporary unit. "Where are the girls?"

Ignis finished his notes and placed his book in his pocket. "Lady Iris is assisting Princess Kairi in getting ready."

Gladiolus appeared confused. "Assisting?"

"Mhmm."

Noctis folded his arms. "With what? Is she putting on body armor or something?"

Ignis grinned, "Well yes, actually."

Emerging onto the sun-soaked streets of Lestallum, the Princess of Heart joined the Royal Reunite. Her long red hair flowing over a different dress than the one they first saw her in. An all-black dress, the same shade and material as the black Crownsguard fatigues that the Noctis and his unit possessed. Her outfit had accents of the pink material of her previous dress, along with a hood, and her arms accessorized in pink wrist guards, just like the black ones Noctis wore.

The wind swept through her hair as she stepped onto the street, making the jaws drop of the boys. Especially Prompto. He took a picture to remember the moment.

Ignis smiled, in pride. "Iris and I needed to do maintenance on our fatigues last night after our battle. After getting some spare sheets of fabric, we managed to combine our Crownsguard uniforms with her magical dress. The result is a quite impressive armor if I say so myself."

Kairi spun around, modeling the results of her new friend's effort. "Plus, it's comfortable. Thank you so much!" She turned her attention to the royalty. "Well, what's the plan your Highness?

"Oh, the usual. Kill some stuff, comb some hillsides, kill a bigger thing. Take a picture and then maybe eat a sandwich."

Prompto interjected, "And gain some E-X-P and make some friends along the way."

"This isn't a game, Prompto." Gladiolus sighed.

"Just trying to level up here dude."

Ignis says, "Well, there will be plenty to gain if that is your approach. Expect plenty of bad guys to fight today."

Prompto returned his focus to his camera. "Hmmm, not really a fan of fighting bad guys."

Gladio asks, "What are you a fan of fighting then?"

"Now that you mention it, not a fan of fighting really."

"Well, you can snap away then." Noctis said. "We got your replacement." An elude to Kairi.

Prompto laughed. "Even better. I'm sure some photos of you would sell for a pretty Gil."

"Who would buy them!?"

Prompto snickered. "Don't worry about that, I know people." He snapped a picture of an off put Noctis and grabbed Kairi by the hand. "Well, let's get going!"

Their exit of the city was swift, unfortunately the Regalia took them as far up the mountain as it could soon after. They were parked on the side of the road and climbed the hillside.

Their hike was equally as tedious as they thought it would be. The terrain was rocky, steep, and every few feet was a tree, making any potential route across the hillside frustratingly short. No paths. No trails. And a vast mountain to have to navigate through. Just a challenge for the party, especially Kairi's, who's conditioning exclusively came from rowing to her play island and swimming at her high school. Not nearly the same as the endurance required under the scalding heat at a seemingly 43 percent incline.

Prompto took in lungsful of breath, clearly not the only one struggling. "I'm not one to complain but-"

Noctis sighed. "Something tells me you're going to do it anyways."

Prompto continued. "Am I the only one that is stinking hot?"

"I'm wearing less clothes than all of you and I feel like I'm dying." Kairi agreed.

Ignis stepped over a jagged rock that threatened his big toe. "I concur with the two of you. The heat up these mountains as opposed to down is staggering."

Prompto looked to Kairi. "I mean, I'm not the one with the magical key or anything but-

Gladio moved brush out of the way so Kairi could proceed, then he followed. "Something tells me you have a suggestion for the one that does."

Noctis however, seemed to like the direction Prompto was headed in. "Guys got a point. Anything that you can do to make the search narrower? Not like I don't like an aimless hike but-"

Kairi froze. Well, how the hell was she supposed to know? Yen Sid told her she could seal the door to the worlds heart, in some fashion. Didn't tell her how. Or what even the Keyhole looked like. Or what even a Keyhole was, and why its default position was _unlocked_.

"Well uh… it didn't exactly come with an instruction manual." she said.

Prompto sighed, dejected. "Awh, no spells?"

"I don't really- think so?"

Gladiolus trekked forward. "Well a normal sword is kind of like a wand. So, I got spells."

Noctis was taken back. "In what regard!?"

Gladiolus snickered. "It only needs two. Parry and Cut."

"I am confused and angry at how not wrong you are." Noctis replied.

"Points for trying." Ignis replied.

Kairi summoned her Keyblade, staring at it intently. Nothing felt differently from the last pair of times she summoned it. But they'd be combing the awful hillside all day if something didn't change. And then had to navigate through its likely large caverns and enemies. The old kings surely didn't like to make things easy, did they?

" _What can you do?"_ she asked of her weapon.

With a deep breath, her blue eyes turned a light pink. The world faded to gray, apart from one color. Emanating from the top of her Keyblade seemed a pink thread, pointing her in a direction over the nearest ridge.

"I think I see something." she says.

Before the boys can respond, or something can change, she follows the lead. Her legs carry her across the hillside, through trees, over the slopes, following this thin pink thread. However, it stops as fast as it appeared, bringing her to seemingly nothing. She stood in front of a pile of gray rocks jetting from the topsoil, appearing as if they were placed there by someone mere hours before, the largest rock no bigger than an apple. However, between these rocks, exists a small hole, an entrance that barely a squirrel could enter.

Ignis was the first to arrive to Kairi's side. "Down there?"

"I think so." she said.

Noctis walked and surveyed the tiny entrance that his hand would barely fit in. "This spot specifically or-?"

Prompto replied, "Well obviously not here, specifically."

"Our fat butts aren't getting through that." Gladiolus chimed.

Prompto sneakily said. "Our?"

"Wanna run that by me again?"

Prompto looked away. "Nothing. You got it, big guy."

Ignis placed his hand to the entrance. "Well, it would seem we're closer than before. This appears to be a smaller part of a cave system. I feel a wind current coming from the entrance." A polearm as lengthy as Ignis appeared in his hand and drove its blade into the ground. "We spread out and search from here. If you see another outcrop like this, notify us and we'll spread from there. We'll be able to narrow our search thanks to Kairi's find."

"Sounds good."

"Roger."

"Will do."

"No problemo."

The party split off separate directions, as instructed. Kairi's path head up the hill, slightly east. Her eyes kept on the ground. Nothing was provided on her path, met with no luck until she heard Prompto's voice nearby, directly to her right side.

"Guys! Guys! Over here!"

She charged in the direction of his scream, through trees and brush and keeping her knees high to avoid tripping over rocks. She entered a clearing, then had a giant smile, that was then quickly wiped from her face.

A large temple was just as Yen Sid said, carved into the hillside. No higher than the tree line, and unless you happened to traverse this specific area of the mountain, it was a very real possibility you missed the entrance. The doors were only forty feet from her, just on the other side of a flat clearing.

Between her and the entrance was merely twenty Heartless.

"You found it." she said weakly.

Prompto replied feebly. "Yay us."

Noctis, Gladiolus and Ignis sprinted into the clearing. "Heartless." they scowled in unison.

Kairi glared at the enemies. "And a lot of them at that."

Noctis stepped forward, challenging the Heartless on his own. "Might be tough if one more shows up."

A double-sided great axe appeared in his hands, unlike any of his multiple weapons Kairi had seen before. It had a specific power about it, something radiating through the air. It not only seemed powerful, but had a regal appearance, as if the craftsman was showing off in making something fit for Royalty.

Noctis walked forward, gaining the Heartless' attention. To Kairi's shock, nobody else moved, content to let Noctis handle this one on his own.

Ignis warned, "Noct, be careful not to overexert yourself."

"Oh no, I want to see how this plays out." Gladiolus added.

"I think I'm missing something." Kairi added.

"That there is a Royal Arm." Ignis explained. "A weapon of the old kings. Very powerful. Takes a lot of energy."

Very destructive. Makes a cool explosion." Prompto added.

Noctis grabbed the hilt of his giant blade with both hands, planted his feet, spun 360 degrees, and launched the great axe high into the air, over the heads of the Heartless waiting for the party to make a move. While the axe was high overhead, Noctis warped to it, and fell from at least thirty feet, _crashing_ into the earth.

 _BOOM_.

In one swing, every heartless was removed from the area swiftly.

Kairi's jaw dropped. She had never seen such a large display of power. "What!?"

Prompto grinned. "Yup."

"He could always do that!?" she asked.

Ignis nodded. "Indeed."

"Then why doesn't he just-"

Gladio folded his arms. "Wait for it."

Noctis' blade disappeared, leaving him hunched over, hands on his knees, then gently falling over to the ground. His chest rising and falling.

"Do you need help!?" Prompto cried out.

Noctis laid on the ground, spread eagle. "Oh no…. Totally fine… just gonna lie down for a sec."

Gladio snickered. "You sure?"

Noctis nearly collapsed into a heap for a nap. "Yeah. Think I just need to- gimme a minute."

Kairi understood. "So that's why."

The tomb stood towering over the hillside, unguarded and locked with nothing separating them from its depths. Kairi could feel something emanating from it. A deep darkness and a bright light. The Keyhole was close.

Ignis coaxed Noctis back to health with a potion, and the Prince unlocked the door- when he had the energy to drink it. The entrance slid apart, and the team was met with gray stone steps that descended into the darkness of the mountain.

"That's weird, why would a tomb be in the interior of a mountain?" Kairi asked.

Gladiolus answered, "There's been weirder places."

Prompto said, "A cave system of ice behind a waterfall."

Ignis added, "An underground mine that didn't really have an apparent use besides housing spiders."

"What!?"

Noctis said, "And another that was in a temple under a lake in the center of a swamp, but Gladio wasn't there for that one."

Kairi's head drooped. "So, none of them are practical?"

Ignis chuckled. "The Kings would prefer _hidden_ , but- yeah."

Gladiolus jeered his prince. "You alive, Noct?"

"Never better." he said.

"I hear you say that, but the optics tell a different tale. Just want to be sure you can head in there with your head up."

Noctis cut his eyes at him. "You mean me wiping out a whole wave like a badass?

"And look where it got you. Flat on your ass."

"Hey, zip it you 4-star character." Noctis snapped.

Gladio relished the roast. "Then does that make you a two star?"

Kairi had enough of the banter. "Personally, I think you're both acting like one stars."

"Ooooh! Scathing!" Prompto said.

Ignis rolled his eyes. "The Princess says we should get a move on, and I am inclined to agree."

Noctis agreed. "Then who would we be to keep her waiting?"

The Crownsguard walked down the stone stairs, descending as one large flight going as far as they had ever seen. The only light came from their flashlights in the dark stairwell.

About one hundred stairs down, the party felt the vertical change getting old. Fast.

"Stairs. Never too many stairs." Prompto added.

Noctis sighed. "I can't stand this many stai- _Wait no. Don't sing it!_ " 

Kairi couldn't help but ask. "Sing what?"

Gladiolus, Noctis and, Ignis screamed in unison, "NO!"

But it was far too late. " _Stairs, they go on! Forever they go ooooooon! "_

Gladiolus screamed loud enough to make the cavern shake. "Dammit! Now that'll be stuck in my head all day!"

Another twenty minutes of climbing found the team at the end of the stairs, a large open room. A Circular dome lit with small holes in the ceiling from the daylight outside. On the other side of the room, the Royal Tomb door sat, waiting for the Prince to claim it.

Noctis scoffed at the open space. "Oh. This totally isn't a boss room."

Prompto agreed. "You think? What gave you that idea? The big open space, or maybe the ominousness of it all?"

Kairi stared off into space for a little while, taking it all in. Then, the purple orbs appeared in front of them. Dozens of Heartless appear. Big Bodies. Neoshadows. Flying Wyverns. Shadows. Knights. More than she had ever seen, even in the door to darkness, even on the day her own world was eaten.

Ignis looked to her, "Kairi how are you feeling?"

The Heartless were never going to take another world. Not while she finally had the chance to do something about it.

Her Keyblade appeared in her hand. "Like I can do anything."

Gladiolus smiled in pride. "There she is."

Kairi planted her Keyblade into the ground, her blue eyes nearly turning red for intensity. She's focused. She's as prepared as ever.

She's ready.

Finally, the Princess of Heart and the Warrior of Light.

She roared, "Crownsguard!"

Noctis summons his Engine Blade and readies his stance. "Yeah!"

Ignis summons his daggers, rotating them to be thrown at a moment's notice. "At your service."

Prompto loads his gun. "Ready!"

Gladio summons and shoulders his great axe, and with a grunt, he's battle ready.

Kairi pointed her blade at the enemies before her.

"Let's go!"


End file.
